KATHMANDU, March 30: Minister for Physical Infrastructure and Transport Raghubir Mahaseth said that Nepal is expecting to complete Detail Project Reports of Kathmandu-Kerung and Kathmandu-Raxual railways within one year.
"The East-West Railway is around 1100 kilometers. We have completed pre-feasibility survey of Kathmandu-Kerung and Kathmandu-Raxual railways. We hope to complete DPRs of both the railways within one year", Mahaseth said while addressing a session titled "Building Sustainable Transport Infrastructure" during the ongoing Nepal Investment Summit 2019.
Minister Mahasetha said that the estimated cost of proposed Kathmandu-Kerung railway is around 3 billion USD. "We are planning to finalize the Detail Project Report of the Kathmandu-Kerung railway project in six months. There will be discussion with the Chinese side about the modality of the DPR by the first week of April," he added.
Construction work of Mechi-Mahakali Electric Railways underway
The minister said that the government encourages the private sector to invest in the aviation sector. "We are working to improve transport infrastructure in the country," he said.
After prolonged political transition, Nepal is now heading to achieve sound economic growth, he said. "We are graduating to the middle-income country by 2030," he said.
Experts and government officials from Nepal and various foreign countries are delivering their remarks during the second day of the Nepal Investment Summit 2019. Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli had inagurated the summit amid a special function on Friday morning.
As part of the summit, parallel sessions titled "Infrastructure: Building Sustainable Transport Infrastructure", "Agro and Forest Products: Opportunities Through Niche and Value Chains" and two plenary sessions "Invest in Nepal: Experience Sharing", "International Experience Sharing" and "Financing for Infrastructure Development" are being held at Hotel Soaltee in the capital.
The summit has witnessed the participation of over 600 foreign investors including high-level delegates from 40 countries.
